Local officials in one of the hardest-hit counties have still revealed little about what, if any, actions they took to safeguard residents, tourists, and visitors in an area known as “flash flood alley.

Texas county commissioners previously suggested "river calling," an informal phone chain used by summer camps, would be better than installing new flood sirens.

Kerr County, where dozens of people—many of them children—died in this weekend's catastrophic flooding, knew flash floods were a danger in the area—but its application for a grant to improve its flood warning system was rejected by the Texas Division of Emergency Management in both 2017 and 2018,